Beginning Of Old Age Research Articles

Popular views of old age in America, 1900-1950.

The aging of the American population has significantly changed medical practice over the last century. As is well known, life expectancy first began to increase dramatically in the late 19th century, but at the same time that the numbers of older people have been increasing, the social and cultural meanings of growing old have also changed. It is likely that different cohorts of older people have had different experiences with old age because of the time periods they lived through. This paper offers one way to look at some of the historical changes that have affected the public and the medical profession on the subject of old age by looking at old age through American popular literature in the first half of the 20th century in three overlapping time periods. In the first three decades of the century, the concept of old age was widely defined, and older people (rather than physicians) were the principal authorities in describing the qualities of old age. In the third and fourth decades of the century, the idea of old age was starting to acquire increasing negative connotations, but chronological age itself did not signal the beginning of old age. However, by the late 1930s and 1940s, old age became widely viewed as a specific social and medical problem to be addressed by professionals, and older people had become a recognizable population, with a variety of groups organized around their care. This paper illustrates changes in American understandings of old age within and without the medical profession and suggests ways in which popular conceptions of old age might continue to shift and affect how physicians take care of their older patients in the future.

Menopausia: representaciones sociales y prácticas

To characterize the meanings attributed to menopause, as a first approximation to the representational world of this event. A qualitative study was conducted between September and October 1998, in twenty women aged 45-65 years, residents of Cuernavaca and Emiliano Zapata, municipalities of Morelos state, Mexico. Twenty in-depth interviews were conducted using a guide, to collect data on sociodemographic variables, diagnosis, feelings and emotions, changes in life style, and physiological changes. Findings show that menopause is represented as the end of fertility and the beginning of old age. Characterization of menopause is related to womanhood, body, and sexuality representations. This paper analyzes women's practices related to life experiences such as medical visits. Implications of these findings are discussed using the social construction of meanings framework.

Turning 60 in paris, city of old men

As he turns 60 and, in spite of all assurances from family members and other well wishers convinces himself that this indeed is the beginning of old age, it occurs to a man that he should spend his birthday in the City of Light, Ernest Hemingway's “moveable feast” the city for the young—Paris. He is given that opportunity, and as he wanders the city he finds reflected in its life—even the tourist-dominated life of Paris in the summer—the losses that he believes he now must recognize, the occasional grimness of that recognition, and some consolation for suffering the sense of loss—not only lost youth but lost middle age, with all that it implies.

BEGINNING OF OLD AGE IN JAPAN AND AGE NORMS IN ADULTHOOD

The idea and practice of lifelong learning (or lifelong education) have recently become popular in Japan. Clarifying the developmental process of the human life course is an important task of researchers in the education field, because knowledge of the characteristics and tasks of the human life course will be useful for planning educational programs in the area of lifelong education. In this article, I present the findings of research on age norms in adulthood (i.e., what people perceive as the normal expectable life course) and on the beginning of old age in Japan. The educational implications of these findings are discussed. To ascertain age norms in adulthood (or the normal expectable life course) and the norm for the beginning of old age in Japan, I conducted a questionnaire survey of three age groups. The main results were as follows: (a) All age groups perceived the life events listed on the questionnaire as occurring earlier for women than for men. (b) Young people conceived of the age norm events as occurring earlier in the life course than did the elderly, especially the events in the age grading and subjective sense of age categories. (c) As for the beginning of old age, many people in their 60s did not believe themselves to be old. They believed that old age begins at around 70. (d) As for the events marking the beginning of old age, many people stated that physiological and psychological changes were markers of old age. People after their late 70s stated that psychological changes were very important. These results have implications for the promotion of aging education, especially education to improve understanding of different generations.

The definitions of the beginning of old age in history.

The beginning of old age has been addressed by many writers and scholars over the centuries. From ancient literature to contemporary times, most authorities have located the beginning of old age around age sixty, although some thought it started around age forty. High mortality rates had negligible effects on when old age was thought to begin. Gender may have had more influence, as women were consistently viewed as aging more rapidly and sooner than men. Overall, the age range thought to start old age has been fairly consistent. Nevertheless, within historical contexts varying opinions on the beginning of old age have co-existed, and distinctions between young-old and old-old have been acknowledged. Initially, external factors were viewed as affecting the beginning of old age, but as history unfolded, more emphasis was placed on the individual's relationship with society and ability to perform tasks. With the rise of formal retirement, less emphasis was placed on the individual's ability and more on chronological age. Thus, defining the beginning of old age returned to external factors, such as governmental and economic definitions, and became based on chronological age. In the future, these factors may either lead to new parameters or perhaps a questioning of whether it is even necessary to define the beginning of old age.

A GERONTOLOGICAL TREATISE OF THE RENAISSANCE

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article ArticleNo AccessA GERONTOLOGICAL TREATISE OF THE RENAISSANCE"De Bono Senectutis" by Gabriele Paleotti (1522-1597)KARL STERN, and THOMAS CASSIRERKARL STERNSearch for more papers by this author, and THOMAS CASSIRERSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:1 Apr 2006https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.102.6.770AboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail PDFThis content is only available as a PDF. Access content To read the fulltext, please use one of the options below to sign in or purchase access. Personal login Institutional Login Sign in via OpenAthens Purchase Save for later Item saved, go to cart PPV Articles - American Journal of Psychiatry $35.00 Add to cart PPV Articles - American Journal of Psychiatry Checkout Please login/register if you wish to pair your device and check access availability. Not a subscriber? Subscribe Now / Learn More PsychiatryOnline subscription options offer access to the DSM-5 library, books, journals, CME, and patient resources. This all-in-one virtual library provides psychiatrists and mental health professionals with key resources for diagnosis, treatment, research, and professional development. Need more help? PsychiatryOnline Customer Service may be reached by emailing [email protected] or by calling 800-368-5777 (in the U.S.) or 703-907-7322 (outside the U.S.). FiguresReferencesCited byDetailsCited ByThe Definitions of the Beginning of Old Age in History1 January 1995 | The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, Vol. 34, No. 4The Age Old Question of Old Age: Was it Really so Much Better Back When?1 January 1995 | The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, Vol. 8, No. 2, Vol. 1-5The Journal of Genetic Psychology, Vol. 88, No. 2 Volume 102Issue 6 May 1946Pages 770-773 Metrics PDF download History Published online 1 April 2006 Published in print 1 May 1946